Miller (1956) summarized evidence that people can remember about seven chunks in short-term memory (STM) tasks. How- ever, that number was meant more as a rough estimate and a rhetorical device than as a real capacity limit. Others have since suggested that there is a more precise capacity limit, but that it is only three to five chunks. The present target article brings together a wide vari- ety of data on capacity limits suggesting that the smaller capacity limit is real. Capacity limits will be useful in analyses of information processing only if the boundary conditions for observing them can be carefully described. Four basic conditions in which chunks can be identified and capacity limits can accordingly be observed are: (1) when information overload limits chunks to individual stimulus items, (2) when other steps are taken specifically to block the recoding of stimulus items into larger chunks, (3) in performance discontinuities caused by the capacity limit, and (4) in various indirect effects of the capacity limit. Under these conditions, rehearsal and long-term memory cannot be used to combine stimulus items into chunks of an unknown size; nor can storage mechanisms that are not capacity- limited, such as sensory memory, allow the capacity-limited storage mechanism to be refilled during recall. A single, central capacity limit averaging about four chunks is implicated along with other, noncapacity-limited sources. The pure STM capacity limit expressed in chunks is distinguished from compound STM limits obtained when the number of separately held chunks is unclear. Reasons why pure capacity estimates fall within a narrow range are discussed and a capacity limit for the focus of attention is proposed.

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The magical number 4 in short-term memory: a reconsideration of mental storage capacity.

Well-being : the foundations of hedonic psychology

CONSORT guidelines call for precise reporting of behavior change interventions: we need rigorous methods of characterizing active content of interventions with precision and specificity. The objective of this study is to develop an extensive, consensually agreed hierarchically structured taxonomy of techniques [behavior change techniques (BCTs)] used in behavior change interventions. In a Delphi-type exercise, 14 experts rated labels and definitions of 124 BCTs from six published classification systems. Another 18 experts grouped BCTs according to similarity of active ingredients in an open-sort task. Inter-rater agreement amongst six researchers coding 85 intervention descriptions by BCTs was assessed. This resulted in 93 BCTs clustered into 16 groups. Of the 26 BCTs occurring at least five times, 23 had adjusted kappas of 0.60 or above. “BCT taxonomy v1,” an extensive taxonomy of 93 consensually agreed, distinct BCTs, offers a step change as a method for specifying interventions, but we anticipate further development and evaluation based on international, interdisciplinary consensus.

/pdf/the-behavior-change-technique-taxonomy-v1-of-93-5aiifoydgz.pdf

The Behavior Change Technique Taxonomy (v1) of 93 Hierarchically Clustered Techniques: Building an International Consensus for the Reporting of Behavior Change Interventions

The concept of working memory proposes that a dedicated system maintains and stores information in the short term, and that this system underlies human thought processes. Current views of working memory involve a central executive and two storage systems: the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad. Although this basic model was first proposed 30 years ago, it has continued to develop and to stimulate research and debate. The model and the most recent results are reviewed in this article.

/pdf/working-memory-looking-back-and-looking-forward-58jorxris3.pdf

Working memory: looking back and looking forward

Richard Schmidt presents on the role of consciousness in second language learning at the 1988 Second Language Research Forum (SLRF) held in at the University of Hawai‘i.

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The role of consciousness in second language learning

List of figures and tables Preface Part I Introduction: 1 What is to be explained? some preliminaries Part II The Basic Model: 2 Model 1: conscious representations are internally consistent and globally distributed 3 The neural basis of conscious experience Part III The Fundamental Role of Context: 4 Model 2: unconscious contexts shape conscious experience 5 Model 3: conscious experience is informative - it always demands some degree of adaptation Part IV Goals and Voluntary Control: 6 Model 4: Goal contexts, spontaneous problem solving, and the stream of consciousness 7 Model 5: volition as ideomotor control of thought and action Part V Attention, self, and conscious self-monitoring: 8 Model 6: attention as control of access to consciousness 9 Model 7 Self as the dominant context of experience and action Part VI Consciousness is Functional: 10 The functions of consciousness Part VII Conclusion: 11 A summary and some future directions Glossary and guide to theoretical claims References Name index, Subject index

A cognitive theory of consciousness

https://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/ahyvarin/teaching/niseminar4/Baars2002.pdf

The conscious access hypothesis: origins and recent evidence

Global workspace (GW) theory emerged from the cognitive architecture tradition in cognitive science. Newell and co-workers were the first to show the utility of a GW or "blackboard" architecture in a distributed set of knowledge sources, which could cooperatively solve problems that no single constituent could solve alone. The empirical connection with conscious cognition was made by Baars (1988, 2002). GW theory generates explicit predictions for conscious aspects of perception, emotion, motivation, learning, working memory, voluntary control, and self systems in the brain. It has similarities to biological theories such as Neural Darwinism and dynamical theories of brain functioning. Functional brain imaging now shows that conscious cognition is distinctively associated with wide spread of cortical activity, notably toward frontoparietal and medial temporal regions. Unconscious comparison conditions tend to activate only local regions, such as visual projection areas. Frontoparietal hypometabolism is also implicated in unconscious states, including deep sleep, coma, vegetative states, epileptic loss of consciousness, and general anesthesia. These findings are consistent with the GW hypothesis, which is now favored by a number of scientists and philosophers.

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Global workspace theory of consciousness: toward a cognitive neuroscience of human experience.

Preface Prologue: The Metaphor 1. Treating Consciousness as a Variable 2. The Theater Stage Has Unlimited Capacity But Creates Vast Access 3. On Stage: Sensations, Images, and Ideas 4. The Spotlight: Attention, Absorption, and the Construction of Reality 5. Behind the Scenes: Contexts, Intentions, and Expectations 6. Volition: Conscious Control of Action 7. The Direction: Self as the Unifying Context of Consciousness 8. What Is It Good For? The Functions of Consciousness 9. Epilogue: A Tiny Bit of Philosophy Appendix: Make Your Own Theory - The Basic Evidence

/pdf/in-the-theater-of-consciousness-the-workspace-of-the-mind-4469dosgdj.pdf

In the theater of consciousness : the workspace of the mind

http://cogprints.org/5854/1/TICSarticle2003.pdf

Bernard J. Baars

Papers

A cognitive theory of consciousness

The conscious access hypothesis: origins and recent evidence

Global workspace theory of consciousness: toward a cognitive neuroscience of human experience.

In the theater of consciousness : the workspace of the mind

How conscious experience and working memory interact